Direct and indirect speech - VIII std

Direct and Indirect speech

DIRECT SPEECH

Direct speech repeats, or quotes, the exact words spoken. When we use direct speech in writing, we place the words spoken between quotation marks (" ") and there is no change in these words.

EXAMPLES

• She says, "What time will you be home?"
• She said, "What time will you be home?" and I said, "I don't know! "
• "There's a fly in my soup!" screamed Simone.
• John said, "There's an elephant outside the window."

INDIRECT SPEECH

Reported or indirect speech is usually used to talk about the past, so we normally change the tense of the words spoken. We use reporting verbs like 'say', 'tell', 'ask', and we may use the word 'that' to introduce the reported words. Inverted commas are not used.

EXAMPLES

• She told him that she was happy.
• She was speaking on the telephone.

Here are some examples of Direct and Indirect Speech.

• Direct: He says, “Jack kills a giant.”
  Indirect: He says that Jack kills a giant.
•  Direct: He said, “I am a hockey player.”

Indirect: He said that he was a hockey player.

• Direct: He said to me, “What isyour name?Indirect: He asked me what myname was.